


The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Christmassers

by raebands



Series: Avengers: Earth's Mightiest... [7]
Category: Norse Religion & Lore, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Family Fluff, Fluff and Crack, Gen, Steve has a crush on Darcy, They're almost a relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-27
Updated: 2019-06-27
Packaged: 2020-05-20 21:17:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,915
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19384834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/raebands/pseuds/raebands
Summary: Ever wonder what Christmas is like at Avengers Tower? If so, you should read this. They lead very interesting lives, those Avengers...





	1. Chapter 1

Clint wanders aimlessly along the street, peering in shop windows and watching people buy their Christmas presents. Ah. Christmas. The most wonderful time of the year. He would never admit it to anyone, but he loves how happy and cheerful everyone is. That's not the kind of thing assassins go around telling everybody. Not when they want to remain threatening in combat.

Clint takes a deep breath through his nose, feeling the cold New York air. It hurts his nostrils, but he doesn't care. It smells like Christmas. Christmas smells like snow, pine needles, and sugar cookies. These are the smells Clint loves most.

There are several reasons why Clint loves Christmas so much. One of which being that he doesn't have to work during the Christmas season. No, that doesn't mean that S.H.I.E.L.D. closes down during the holidays. It just means that they aren't trying to kill everyone, so they don't need full staff. If someone is needed, they are on call. They don't have to go into work every day.

Another thing Clint loves about the holiday season is the snow. He loves snow. Snowball fights, snowmen, snow forts, snow angels. Pretty much everything to do with snow. The one thing he doesn't like about snow is how hard it is to drive when it's snowing or the road is coated in snow. Clint is a man who likes to go places, so he doesn't like being told that he can't drive. It didn't bode well last year, when all of New York was coated in a freezing, white blanket of snow.

Clint jumps when Loki's voice whispers right in his ear, "Enjoying the scenery, Barton?"

Clint can hear the smirk in the other man's words. He turns around to face Loki. The dark haired god is wearing a black coat, grey gloves, and a dark green scarf. His hair isn't slicked back as it usually is. Instead, black curls dance around his shoulders. His nose, cheeks, and ears are pink from the cold. His green eyes seem to sparkle with amusement and happiness. His arms are laden with bulging shopping bags from various stores.

Clint raises an eyebrow and says, "Well, you're all decked out. What have you been up to?"

Loki holds up the bags, smiling. "Christmas shopping. It's rather obvious, I think."

Clint laughs. He asks, "Tony told you about the party, I assume?"

Loki looks confused. He opens his mouth to answer, but someone barrels into him.

"Whoa, sorry, Rudolf! I've been trying to text you for, like, two days! Why didn't you answer your phone?" Tony doesn't wait for an answer before he digs around in his pocket and pulls out his own cell phone. He slides his finger across the screen quickly and types in his password. He taps a few more times and lifts it up to his ear.

"Yeah. I finally found him. The guy's elusive, I'll give him that. Yeah, he's coming. You're coming, right, Loki? Yeah, he's coming. So make that, um…..four, no, five more. Yep. Okay. Love you, bye!"

Loki is standing there, his mouth open, staring at Tony as the billionaire taps his phone again and slides it into his coat pocket. He flashes Clint and Loki his trademark grin.  
"So. Merry Christmas."

Clint busts out laughing as Loki blinks, still a bit dazed. He recovers after a moment and shifts his stance. He clears his throat and shifts again. Tony still grins, an expectant expression on his bearded face.

"Well, then. Uh… Well… I guess I have more shopping to do!" Loki says with a smile.

Tony impulsively leans forward and brings Loki into a big hug. "Awww, you're so sweet!"

Loki stands there awkwardly as Tony squirms while he hugs him. Clint is still laughing. Several people give them funny looks as they pass. One little girl just keeps staring. As she and her mother walk on, Loki can hear the mother say, "Come on, dear. Don't look at them."

Tony finally pulls away from the ex-villain and smoothes out the other's coat. He gives him a smile and says, "Well, I'd better be on my way. Bring your whole family, too. They're all welcome."

He turns and jogs away, calling over his shoulder, "And wear something festive!"

 

* * *

 

Natasha walks through the same mall that she and Clint took Loki's kids to a couple months back. She, like many other people this time of year, is Christmas shopping. So far, she has the newest _Avengers_ comic for Clint, a pair of nice shoes for Pepper, a pair of sunglasses that fit over regular glasses for Bruce, a _Technology for Dummies_ book for Thor, a picture of Peggy in a locket for Steve, a silver necklace for Sigyn, a box of all the original Disney movies and some of the new ones for Hela, Vali, and Narfi, a gold ring for Loki, a book on Norse mythology for Jane, and a scarf and beanie for Darcy.

Clint's present was the easiest. Probably because she spends the most time with him. It might also be due to the fact that he has been begging for the comic since it came out.

Pepper's present took a little more time to get. She had the idea, but she had to get Tony to find out what size shoe Pepper wore. This isn't easy when she hides all her shoes away somewhere.

Bruce's present was fairly easy. He had been squinting in the sun more and more often. He had tried on some regular sunglasses, but that hadn't worked too well. His eyesight had gotten worse since Loki's attempt to take over the world, and he crashed into something after taking off his glasses once.

Thor's present wasn't very difficult, either. After a few trashed televisions and a toaster that is now, well, toast, the other Avengers were sick of Thor breaking things. The gift will provide peace for the others. It will also help Thor. If he's going to date a scientist, then he has to know how to act around some tech.

Steve's present was a bit iffy. She knew that she didn't want to give him some patriotic gift. He may like it, but that doesn't mean that he doesn't want other stuff sometimes. His entire room is filled with red, white, and blue stuff. So eventually Natasha settled on something a little sweeter. She borrowed one of Steve's pictures of Peggy, took it to a photo shop and got a miniature picture printed out. She then went to a jewelry store and found a locket shaped like a dog tag. She didn't want to get anything that looked too girly, so the dog tag worked perfectly. She fitted in the picture, set the locket in a nice little gift box, and she was done.

Sigyn was a little difficult, since Natasha doesn't really know her all that well. She has noticed, however, that the other woman wears different necklaces. She was either always wearing a different one, or none at all. Natasha doesn't recall ever seeing her in the same necklace. So getting her another one wouldn't hurt. It would give her even more variety.

The gifts for the kids weren't hard, either. They had certainly loved the Disney movies when Natasha and Clint had to babysit them. So it makes sense to give them some more. She made sure that they were okay with Sigyn, though. She didn't want to give them anything that they wouldn't be able to watch.

Loki was the hardest to buy for. She actually had to go to Thor to see what she should give him after days of trying to find something right. The blonde god had told her to give him something to do with magic. She had explained that she didn't know anything about magic. Then Thor got her to bring him a ring. She picked out a nice gold one inlaid with emeralds. Thor had taken it up to Asgard and gotten a witch up there to put some magic over it so that it would hold extra energy for spellcasting. Loki was always running out of energy because he used his magic so often. This ring would help with that.

Natasha found it fairly easy to get Jane a good present. It wasn't as easy as Clint's, but it wasn't hard, either. Jane had been doing lots of research on Norse mythology lately, so a huge book on it made the perfect gift. She even had Darcy go through Jane's stuff to make sure that she didn't already have it.

Getting Darcy a present was even easier. The brunette is always running around in a beanie when it's cold. She occasionally wore a scarf, too. So Natasha got her a matching beanie, scarf, and glove set. They are a deep, royal purple and extremely soft.

Natasha only has three more gifts to buy. She doesn't know what she's supposed to get, either. Phil is like a father to her, so she can't _not_ get him something. If that even makes sense. Maria's kinda special, too. She calls in every now and then, just to make sure that everything's going well. You have to give her credit for her perseverance. Most are just glad when they don't have to deal with Natasha and Clint anymore. And Fury. What in the world is she supposed to give Fury?

As she walks through the mall, she gets an awesome idea. A smile spreads across her face and she hurries to a decal shop.

 

* * *

 

Bruce sits back on the couch, sipping his hot cocoa. It was _such_ a good idea to get his shopping done early. It's no fun to go shopping on Christmas Eve. None of the other residents of Avengers Tower seem to have thought of that. That's why they're all out shopping right now.

He rarely gets time alone, so he doesn't really mind having the tower to himself. He can watch whatever he wants on TV without having everyone fuss at him to change the channel. He can listen to whatever music he wants to without having someone change the radio station. He can take a nap without having anyone wake him up.

Bruce's eyes droop a bit. He had a rough night, having been up all night coughing and fighting off nausea. Somehow that all went away when he woke up. He still doesn't know how it happened, but somehow it did. He wasn't sick at all this morning. But that didn't mean that he wasn't tired from last night's ordeals.

Bruce allows himself to drop off to sleep just as Steve comes in the room, his arms filled with brightly wrapped presents. The soldier smiles when he sees Bruce napping on the couch. He had heard his friend the night before, and knows that he had been sick. He's glad to see that the scientist is getting some rest.

Steve goes over to the huge Christmas tree and slides his presents down under the branches. He positions them so that the largest are in the back and the smallest in the front. The more oddly shaped gifts, like Clint's, are set on top of the large ones. Steve smiles when he puts Darcy's present _in_ the tree. It's the smallest of all the presents. It was also the hardest to wrap. He had gotten Pepper's help wrapping it because it was so small.

Once all of the presents are settled around the tree, Steve backs out from under the pine. The needles get stuck in his hair and all over his shirt, and he has to brush himself off. By the time he has all of the needles off, the floor is more or less covered in them. Honestly, he doesn't know how the tree can still have so many if it looks like someone killed it on the floor. He shakes his head and walks into the kitchen to get the broom.

 

* * *

 

Sigyn sits on her and Loki's shared bed, helping the kids wrap their presents. She is also holding the newest member of the family, Dagna. The baby girl watches with wide, soft blue eyes. She stays close to Sigyn's breast, though, holding onto her shirt with chubby little hands. She really is adorable.

Hela and the twins are trying to choose which paper to wrap Natasha's present with. They had to pick a single present to give her, because Loki still hasn't found a steady job and it's illegal to make money with magic. The kids didn't mind, though. They thought it would be better for them to all work together to pick presents for their babysitters.

"I think she'll like this!" Hela declares, holding up a roll of pink wrapping paper. Her brothers don't seem to agree.

"It's too girly, Helsie. She isn't very girly."

Hela sticks out her tongue and turns to Sigyn. "What do you think, Mama?"

Sigyn smiles slightly and says, "You know her more than I do. You three choose."

Hela grumbles and limps back to the papers to find a new one. She is bent on picking some that her brothers like, too. She pulls out a roll of paper that is striped like a candy cane.

"How 'bout this?"  
The boys nod, grinning. They exclaim, "Yeah! That's perfect!"

Hela smiles and goes over to her mother. "Can you wrap it with this, Mama?"

Sigyn nods, smiling. She gently takes the wrapping paper and begins the long process of wrapping a gift with one hand while holding a baby in the other.


	2. Chapter 2

Loki sits cross-legged on the floor in his room at Avengers Tower. His phone is stuck between his cheek and his shoulder as he wraps the many presents he had bought earlier that day. There is a giant mess around him consisting of tape and scrap paper. There are sheets of labels and a few pens lying around, as well.

"Stark, it seems that you have neglected to tell me when it is that the party will be tonight."

_"Loki, you live with us. We can come up and get you."_

Loki and his family had moved into Stark Tower after they had lost their house. A week before Christmas. He and Vali were practicing a bit of magic and the little one's got out of control. Unfortunately, they had been practicing fire making. The entire house had collapsed, but all they can do now is laugh about it. Tony had offered to buy them a new house, but the kids had asked if they could stay in the tower. There was an entire floor that Tony had no idea what to do with. So, naturally, he let them stay. Holiday spirit and all that.

"I still need to know when I should be ready." Loki sounds amused.

_"Right. Be ready around five. I'll come up and get you then."_

Loki glances up at the clock and his eyes widen. He nearly drops the phone.

"That's in two minutes!"

 _"Yeah. You can do it."_ Loki can hear the smirk in the other man's voice. Before he can say anything in return, Tony hangs up.

Loki looks up at the clock. One minute. He stands and calls out the door, "Time to get ready! Anthony's going to be here in a minute to take us to the party. Get changed and gather all the presents, please."

There are different calls in return and Loki closes the door again. He snaps his fingers and the presents start to wrap themselves. He pulls off his black shirt and changes into a green one. He hopes that that is 'festive' enough. When he's done brushing his hair, which is still curly, he brushes his teeth and slips on his shoes. When he opens the door, Tony is staring at him, grinning. He holds out a box.

"Wear this. It's better."

Loki takes the box suspiciously and closes the door in Tony's face. He can hear the muffled 'ow' from his side of the door. He removes the lid and groans when he sees what is inside. A sweater.  A huge, bulky, reindeer sweater. He takes it out of the box and holds it up so he can see the entire picture. The reindeer has a soccer ball down by its hooves. Under the reindeer are the words 'Reindeer games'.

After a moment, Loki pulls it on over his other shirt and opens the door again.

"Happy?"

Tony nods, grinning again. He turns and heads out into the main room, where the rest of Loki's family is waiting. They all wear sweaters, too. Vali and Narfi's sweaters match. They have little Christmas trees in the middle with a red background. Hela's sweater is like a penguin with a little bowtie. Sigyn's is an icy blue with small, sparkly white snowflakes. Even Dagna has a sweater. Hers is a soft pink with 'Baby's First Christmas' in darker pink. Tony himself is wearing a red sweater with 'Merry Christmas' in gold.

The wrapped gifts float out of the other room and stack themselves neatly in Loki's arms. The mage smiles and says, "We're ready to go now, Anthony."

Tony laughs and leads them out of the room. When they reach the main room, where the party is being held, they are greeted with a collective shout.  
"Merry Christmas!"

Loki deposits the gifts under the tree and leads his family over to the huge couch. Tony somehow found one so big that all the residents of Avenger's Tower can fit onto it. Loki sits all the way to the right with Sigyn beside him, holding Dagna. Vali sits beside his mother with Narfi on his other side. Hela sits beside Narfi. Tony plops down beside Hela and smiles at her. She returns the smile a little shyly.

Tony looks up and addresses the entire room, "We only have to wait for the other S.H.I.E.L.D. members now. Oh, and Jane and Darcy. When they get here, we'll start!"

 

* * *

 

About fifteen minutes later, Phil walks up to the door and presses the doorbell. He holds five small presents in his arms. They are all wrapped in green with red bows tied on the tops. While he waits for Tony to come answer the door, he checks the labels several times, just to make sure that he doesn't give them to the wrong people. He did that before, and it was terrible. Never give your boss your girlfriend's present or vice versa. It doesn't end well.

When the door opens, Phil is surprised to see Pepper. She smiles at him.

"Phil! Come in."

She steps aside so he can come in the door. She leads him over to the elevator and presses the button for the main room. Tony has arranged the buttons so that they form an 'A'. Just like on the side of the tower. The button for the main room is in the line in the middle of the letter.

The ride in the elevator isn't nearly as awkward as one might think. It turns out that the two of them are pretty good friends. When they get to the room, they are both smiling and Pepper is laughing softly.

"Merry Christmas!"

Phil jumps slightly at the group's greeting. He smiles again, this time bigger, and places the presents under the tree. By now, it's pretty full. Phil takes his seat in one of the black armchairs. He observes all the different decorations and smiles.  He hadn't expected Tony to decorate so nicely. It looks very Christmassy, with all the hanging snowflakes and the red bows on everything. The wreaths add a classic touch.

Tony tosses Phil a box and everybody laughs. The S.H.I.E.L.D. agent looks surprised, but opens it anyway. Inside is a sweater. He looks up and realizes that everyone in the room is wearing a sweater.

Clint and Natasha's are gingerbread people. Clint's a boy and Natasha's a girl. Bruce's is a Santa hat on a dark green background. Steve's is a teddy bear sitting on a pile of presents. Thor's is a very fuzzy looking puppy with a bow around its neck. Pepper's is striped vertically in red and green.

 

Phil looks down at his own sweater and pulls it out of the box. He laughs softly when he sees it. On his shirt is a smiling snowman and a cozy looking house with smoke coming out of the chimney. There are little white bobbles on it, suggesting snow.

Tony says, "The bathroom is close by, if you want to change. I wanna see it on you."

Phil nods, smiling, and stands. He goes into the bathroom and comes out a moment later wearing his new sweater. He is wearing one of his real smiles. They're almost as hard to get out of him as they are to get out of Loki. But when they come out, they shine.

 

* * *

 

Maria sighs as she waits outside Fury's door. She's been waiting here for at least ten minutes after giving him a half hour to get ready.

"Sir, are you ready yet?"

"Just a minute, Hill! I'm almost done!"

Maria can hear his footsteps coming over to the door before he yanks it open. She is completely unprepared for what she sees. Fury wears a Rudolph nose and antlers. And although these things are extremely strange for Fury, the thing that really gets Maria is the reindeer body suit that he is wearing.

"Sir, what is that?"

Fury puts his fists on his hips and sticks his chest out, declaring, "It's my reindeer suit!"

Maria nods, hiding her emotions. "You're ready to go, then?"

Fury nods and walks out past her. As he walks by, all of the other S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel stares after him. There are quite a few phones out, too.

Maria snags their gifts for the Avengers and walks out after him.

Needless to say, when the two of them reached Avengers Tower, everyone was surprised to see Fury's costume. The kids loved it. Tony loved it. Clint loved it. Thor loved it. Everyone else thought it was a bit awkward. Tony gave them their sweaters, and Fury pulled his over his suit. Maria went to the bathroom and put hers on. When she came out, everybody cheered.

 

* * *

 

When Darcy hears her phone ding, she looks down. She breaks into a smile. It's from Steve. She makes sure that her boss isn't looking before opening the message.

_'You're still coming to the party, right?'_

Oops. She forgot. She sends a hasty text back.

'Of course. I'm gonna be a little late, though. Still working. :('

It only takes him a few seconds to send a message back. He's gotten much better at using his phone.

_'You're working? On Christmas Eve?'_

Darcy can't help but smile. She types her reply, and just as she's about to send it, her boss calls, "Alright, everybody! Close it up! We can't stay here long. It's nearly Christmas!"

Darcy erases the message, smiling, and types a new one.

'Just got done. I'll head over now. :)'

She slides her phone into her pocket and stands. She makes sure that all of the comics are in their right places before she scoots out of the room. She grabs her coat on the way out and calls over her shoulder, "Merry Christmas!"

Darcy smiles the entire time she drives. She drops by Jane's apartment to pick her up. Jane comes outside, already ready. She hops in the car and dumps the presents in the back seat. Then they're driving to the tower, singing along to the Christmas songs on the radio.

When they get there, they just go right into the tower, not bothering to ring the doorbell. They go into the elevator and press the right button. The wait isn't long, fortunately, because if it was any longer, they wouldn't be able to stay still. They're bubbling over with happiness already.

When they reach their floor, they jump through the doors and say, "Merry Christmas!" just as everyone else does. This makes everybody laugh. Jane slides the presents under the tree and goes over to Thor, who crushes her in a hug and kisses her gently. Her cheeks turn slightly pink, as a young girl's might.

Darcy flops beside Steve, who hugs her. "Sorry I was late."

Steve just waves it away. "Nah, you weren't. You were the last people to get here, but you weren't really late."

Darcy chuckles. "So, now that we're all here, what are we going to do?"


	3. Chapter 3

First comes dinner. There's so much food that only Thor, Loki and Steve can eat some of everything. After dinner, Tony makes a huge show of turning on all the Christmas lights in and on the tower. Then he gets JARVIS to play some holiday music and the party starts.

The first game they play is pin the tail on the reindeer, in which Fury is the reindeer. He runs around the room while everyone tries at once to pin on his tail. There is a square piece of thick cardboard strapped to his bum so that he doesn't get hurt.

Sigyn sits on the couch, not wanting to run around the room with an infant in her arms. Phil and Maria stay seated, as well. They have no wish to pin the tail on their boss. That sort of thing doesn't end in a pay raise. Everybody else, including Loki and Bruce, chase after him.

Unbeknownst to Fury, Clint is in his little 'nest' as the Avengers call it. The nest is really only a beam that goes from one side of the room to the other, but up really high. There's only about three feet of space between the beam and the ceiling. And somehow Clint can move across it with no problem. He's up there now, aiming down at Fury's little cardboard butt shield. After only a second or two, a dart with a reindeer tail flies down through the room and sticks in the very middle of the square. Clint drops down and points at it.

"I win!"

Fury looks over his shoulder and laughs, which sets everyone else off. Amidst the laughter, Hela hobbles up and sticks her tail onto Fury as well. She turns and says proudly, "I win, too!"

After that, no one is free from laughing. It takes at least ten minutes before everyone has calmed down.

 

* * *

 

They play several more Christmas themed games. There are Christmas charades, Christmas guessing games, Christmas card games, and many more. Then they sit down and watch a few movies with hot cocoa, candy, and cookies. They watch Polar Express, Elf, and all the classic Christmas movies. While they're watching Rudolph, Tony makes a point to explain why he called Loki 'Reindeer Games'. Then, once Loki understands, he plays the movie again.

Once all their Christmas movies are watched, they all sit on the floor to open presents. This is the most exciting part about Christmas. No lists were made, and no one knows what the other people want. It's exciting to see what they think you'll like.

Everyone insists that Tony open his presents first. He houses them all and pays for everything they do. He protests a little, but soon he agrees and everyone shoves their presents at him at once.

Tony ends up opening Steve's present first. It's one of those little Iron Man masks with the elastic strap on the back. Tony slips it on immediately and says, "I. Am. Iron Man!"

Steve just rolls his eyes, but smiles as Tony hugs him. The next present is from Bruce. Tony expects something science-y. He definitely does not expect a small, perfect replica of his armor. He lifts up the mask so he can see it more easily and lets out a surprised puff of air.

"Bruce, this is too much."

Bruce just shakes his head. He holds up his StarkCard. "You paid for it."

Tony laughs and hugs his science buddy. He opens up the rest of the presents more quickly. Most are Iron Man merchandise. Some, though, are more personal, like Pepper's gift, which was a gift card to Dunkin Donuts.

After Tony opens all his presents, Bruce opens his. His have more variety. Some are shirts, some are stretchy pants, and a few are Hulks. Clint and Tony got him the Hulks. He really likes Natasha's gift, though. He's been searching for some way to make it easier to see in the sun, and this must be the perfect way.

"Sunglasses! Awesome!"

Hugs are given out generously and then it's on to Phil's gifts. It appears that only the other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, Steve, and Loki knew what to get him. His coworkers gave him the things that only they would know that he would like, like tickets to baseball games. Steve got him some Captain America cards. The cards are in completely perfect condition. No foxing on these edges. Phil just stares at the cards for a minute before grinning and thanking Steve multiple times.

Loki's present to Phil is a tube of scar removal cream. It was amazing enough that Phil lived through Loki's attack, but there is no way that he wouldn't have any scars from it. This gift makes Agent Coulson smile a bit.

"It's kind of a…hard place to reach, though. I'm going to have to get someone to help me."

Loki laughs, nodding slightly. "I'm sure you'll find someone."

 

After Phil comes Natasha. She gets small things, like perfumes and earrings. Clint got her a necklace with a glass black widow. She hands it to him and asks him to put it on her. When he does so, she smiles and hugs him. He smiles, his cheeks a bit pink.

Clint opens his gifts when Natasha is done with hers. Everybody gets him pajamas. It is a little known fact - to anybody but his friends - that he absolutely loves pajamas. With every new pair, he squeals a bit and feels them excitedly. With every new pair, someone gets a huge hug. Every new pair gets folded lovingly after a thorough feeling. By the time they are all opened, he's grinning like a kid on Christmas, which he is on the inside.

Pepper comes after Clint. She receives some very nice things. There's a watch and some other bits of jewelry. Tony's present to her comes as a surprise for most of them. It is a porcelain doll that looks like her. She turns this around in her hands a few times before putting her arms around Tony and kissing him. When they finally come apart, she puts the doll in a safe place.

After Pepper finishes opening her own gifts, the others sort of have a free for all. The main room is a mess of wrapping paper and empty bags by the time most of the gifts are open.

Most. Not all. Steve pulls the last present from the tree and hands it Darcy. She smiles at him in an embarrassed, girlfriendy way and tears the wrapping paper off. This takes some time, as Steve seems to have an affinity for tape. After she finally gets the paper off, her mouth drops. It's a box. A ring box. She looks up at Steve, who nods for her to open it. When she does so, she is silent. Steve nudges her after a full two minutes.  
"Darcy, are you alright?"

She nods slowly and says quietly, "It's beautiful."

The ring is indeed beautiful. It is also the most unusual ring that Darcy has ever seen. It is white with a cluster of tiny pink pearls. The white is a bit like a seashell color, with that faint pink tint to it. The pearls bring out this color.

Darcy slips it on and is pleased to find that it fits her ring finger perfectly.

"How'd you get my size?"

Steve smiles and answers, "I guessed."

Darcy smiles, letting a tiny puff of air out of her nose. She leans forward and kisses Steve's cheek, setting it aflame.

 

* * *

 

Later that night, when the room has been cleaned up and everyone is getting a bit tired, Tony starts a fire in the fireplace. He has a special system in place of a chimney that filters out the smoke in the room and lets it out through a vent in the side of the tower. No tower is complete without a fireplace, after all.

As the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents sip hot cocoa from their monogrammed mugs that Natasha had gotten for them, Clint says softly, "What is this all about, really? I mean, I know that there is a story behind Christmas. I've heard bits of it before, but…what does it really mean?"

After a moment, Bruce says, "Well, I know the story, if you want me to tell you. It's a beautiful story, really."

Clint nods and the room falls silent. Bruce takes a sip of his own cocoa and starts.

"And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.  
  
"And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

"And the angel said unto them,

"'Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.  
  
"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.  
"And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.'

"And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

He pauses before saying softly, "That's the true meaning of Christmas, as told by Schulz."

A soft quiet settles over the group as they each smile and nod a bit. Whether or not they believed the story, it was always a nice touch to any Christmas evening. It seemed to bring the entire day to a neat close, as well.

After that, everybody filters off to their own rooms slowly, saying their goodnights. Everyone has a special look in their eyes as they head off to bed. Bruce is the last person left in the room. His heart is lighter than it has been in a while. He's glad that he knows the Christmas story so well. If he didn't, then he doesn't know what he would have done to tell Clint. He could get JARVIS to look it up, but that wouldn't feel as true. Not if a computer did it.

Bruce decides to leave the Christmas decorations plugged in, so it looks nice all night. Even if no one will be there to look at it. He slips out of the room and goes into the elevator. He goes up to his room and changes into his pajamas. He smiles as he remembers how excited Clint had been when he opened all of his presents.

As Bruce slides into bed, he smiles to himself and says softly, "Merry Christmas, everyone."


End file.
